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Opening Statements in Andrea Yates' Retrial; Bush Speaks on Iraq Troop Withdrawal; Iraq Reconciliation Plan Offers Limited Amnesty

Aired June 26, 2006 - 10:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: To Texas now. Was she insane when she drowned her five children in the bathtub? That's the issue this morning as Andrea Yates goes back to court. Opening statements begin this hour in her retrial.
Court TV's Beth Karas is following developments at the Houston courthouse.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BETH KARAS, COURT TV REPORTER (on camera): Andrea Yates is back in court more than four years after she was convicted of murdering three of her five children. At that time, the jury rejected her insanity defense and sentenced her to life in prison. That conviction was reversed on appeal last year, and she is being retried for the same three murders. She's again asserting an insanity defense.

Her attorneys have to prove that Andrea Yates was insane on June 20, 2001, when she filled her bathtub with water and then systematically, one by one, drowned each of her five children; four boys and one girl, ages six months to seven years. Legal experts on both sides agree that she suffers from mental illness, major depression, post-partum depression. She's had delusions, hallucinations, suicide attempts. But they disagree on the severity of it and how it's affected her judgment.

The issue for the jury is whether because of severe mental illness she did not know that killing her children was wrong. The state says there's ample evidence she knew it was wrong, and they point to her confession, where she says she waited for her husband to go to work before killing her children because she knew that he was going to stop her from doing it. She also called 9/11 right after killing them and she said she knew she was going to be punished for what she did.

But the defense is going to present what they say is extensive evidence of her medical history, her mental illnesses, her hospitalizations, how she was overwhelmed with her duties of motherhood. She was home schooling the children and she was obsessed with being a good mother. She did not think she was a good enough mother. She thought she was saving her children from eternal damnation by killing them.

The defense will present experts who will say she was insane at the time the state will have experts who say she was sane at the time. If the jury convicts her, she faces life in prison again. And she could still be charged with the other two deaths of the other two children.

In Houston, for CNN, I'm Beth Karas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Here's our tip of the day: don't take the tunnel. That's the word of warning in Washington. Heavy rains have flooded streets in the nation's capital. There's limited Amtrak service outside the city. Some Metro subway stops are also closed. Commuter train service has been disrupted and things weren't much better by car. Drivers on the capital beltway had their ride slowed down by a mudslide.

More severe flooding east of Washington. Rain turned a Wal-Mart parking lot into a floating lot in Seaford, Delaware. Some homes have extensive damage and crews are urging people to stay off the streets.

John Atwater from our affiliate WTXF takes a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ATWATER, WTXF REPORTER (voice-over): Almost looks like a day at the beach.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a goldfish!

ATWATER: But the fish are swimming in the roads in Seaford.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they're pumping out my basement for me now.

ATWATER: And the water has been pouring into homes all day.

ROBERT STICKLES, SUSSEX CO., DELAWARE: We got hit by I guess what the weather people call a super-cell probably about 7:30 this morning. Rained for about two and a half hours.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The storm drains just couldn't keep up with it up.

ATWATER: And the water had no place to flow. Wal-Mart storm drains flow into the Nanticoke River, and the rivers are already full, so cars parked here are drenched.

Already two dams here have been compromised. And this one, within a stone's throw of a nursing care facility, could go at any point. They got all 120 patients out, though, before the water threatened their lives.

STICKLES: We have several bridges and roads, probably into the dozens, in roads, areas that are just gone.

ATWATER: Seaford seems to have gotten the worst. The damage here is extensive and unheard of. THELMA GILLESPIE, SEAFORD, DELAWARE: This is the first time I've seen it in my life. I had to come walk out and take a look myself.

ATWATER: The floods have pushed about 500 people out of their homes. Even habitats have been disrupted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was just running over into the water, into the flood, so I picked him up.

ATWATER: But even in all the chaos, injuries have been minor.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: A withdrawal plan in the works? The number of U.S. troops may drop sharply, but there's a big if in that. We'll have details on that.

And major anger hitting the minor leagues. Oh, dear, no, no, no. Coming up, the mad manager, the ump and the call that brought them face to face. It's our video of the day. It's straight ahead. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: More news coming out of the U.S. Supreme Court. Tony Harris has that for us -- Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As you predicted, Daryn, the Supreme Court has issued a death penalty decision. The Supreme Court has ruled that the death penalty statute in Kansas does not violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. And here's a story here. The Kansas Supreme Court had thrown the entire state's death penalty system into question when it ruled that the wording of the jury instruction in death cases was unconstitutional.

Let me read this to you, because this gets at the heart of the case here. "Kansas state law says that when a jury's reasons for imposing a capital sentence weigh equally" -- equally, now -- "with reasons for a life sentence, the jury must vote for death."

In effect, what that means is that any tie goes not to the individual, but to the state. And the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that was unconstitutional. In effect, the Supreme Court has reaffirmed, if that's the way to put it. Its belief that a death penalty is, in fact, constitutional.

There are -- just a little more background here. There are currently eight men on Kansas's death row who were waiting on this decision. Those death sentences will move forward and prosecutors are now free to pursue new death penalty cases.

That's the latest decision from the Supreme Court.

Daryn, back to you. KAGAN: All right, Tony, thank you for that. Tensions are rising in Gaza City. Our John Vause is on the phone to tell us about new developments there -- John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn.

A couple of moments ago, we received information from the three Palestinian militant groups currently holding the Israeli soldier, Gilad Shili (ph). These are the first demands being made by the Palestinians for his release. Quit simply, they say Israel will not get any information about the missing soldier until the following conditions are met. There are two conditions. They want the immediate release of all female prisoners currently being held in Israeli jails. That is Palestinian female prisoners, and also the release of all Palestinian children under the age of 18 also being held in Israeli jails. There have been protests here in Gaza by the families, the relatives of those prisoners being held by the Israelis. They are demanding that the Israeli soldier be used as some kind of prisoner swap to release some of those inmates currently being held by the Israeli authority -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right, John Vause on the phone from Gaza City. John, thank you.

A pull-out plan for Iraq is reported to be on the table. "The New York Times" says American troop reductions could begin in September. About 7,000 troops would rotate out of the country without being replaced. And by tend of next year, the 14 U.S. brigades currently serving in Iraq could be reduced to five or perhaps six. The plan was drafted by the top commander in Iraq, General George Casey. Democrats, who have demanded American troops start coming home, say this shows that they are in sync with the general. Republicans insist facts on the ground will dictate any redeployment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN WARNER (R), ARMED SERVICES CHAIRMAN: We will move to reduce our troops as soon as this new government gets up and gain gains the full confidence of the military to direct them to put down the insurgency.

SEN. RUSS FEINGOLD (D), WISCONSIN: And I wonder what all the talk was about how a timeline is a bad idea; we can't tell the terrorists what we're going to do. Well, General Casey just told them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: General Casey's troop reduction plan comes with a big if. That's if the insurgency tapers off in Iraq.

Meanwhile, two more American soldiers in Iraq now are facing criminal charges. The case stems from the February shooting death of an Iraqi civilian in Ramadi. Both soldiers are with the Pennsylvania National Guard.

Details on that now at the Pentagon from our Kathleen Koch.

Kathleen, good morning.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

The incident occurred on February 15th, and Specialist Nathan B. Lin (ph) of the Pennsylvania National Guard has now been charged with one count of voluntary manslaughter for allegedly shooting an unarmed Iraqi man in front of a home near Ramadi, where Lin he was doing security for members of his unit. A press release that was put out by the military, also says that both Lynn and Sergeant Milton Ortiz Junior were charged with one count of obstructing justice for allegedly conspiring with another soldier who allegedly placed an AK- 47 near the body of the mortally wounded man. That soldier though is not facing any charges because he has been redeployed and demobilized. That before the criminal investigation began.

Now other charges were also filed against Sergeant Ortiz in a separate incident. This back on March 8th. He was charged with assault and communicating a threat for allegedly placing an unloaded again against the head of an Iraqi man threatening to take him to prison. Both of the soldiers involved have now been taken to a military installation in Baghdad where they are being held while officials decide whether or not to go forward with a court-martial -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And, Kathleen, what happening with the investigation to what happened in Haditha?

KOCH: Well, you know, Haditha obviously is a very complicated incident. That occurred back in November when some 24 Iraqi civilians were allegedly killed by U.S. Marines after their convoy was hit by a roadside bomb, killing one Marine and seriously injuring several others. And what's happening while the incident occurred in November, the investigation didn't begin until months later. It's made it difficult to collect good solid evidence. It's also a very complicated case, lots of differing versions of what happened. And then the families of the 24 civilians who were killed have been very reluctant to give the military permission to exhume the bodies so that forensic testing can be done.

So, Daryn, at this point, not a single charge has been filed in the case.

KAGAN: Kathleen Koch, thank you.

This story out of Iraq: Amnesty in Iraq. The prime minister there is pushing a reconciliation plan, but that could mean insurgents who killed American troops would walk, possibly.

CNN's Arwa Damon has that story from Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It wasn't the kind of message the Iraqi government needed on the day it unveiled its plan to bring peace and stability. A group linked to al Qaeda claiming on a Web site that it killed four Russian diplomats, beheading three and shooting the fourth.

As Russian officials sought to verify the claim, the Iraqi people mulled over their government's best effort to date for bringing stability to the country. The long-awaited national reconciliation plan presented to parliament, promises Iraqis have heard before.

NOURI AL-MALIKI, IRAQ'S PRIME MINISTER (through translator): As for the terrorists and the supporters of the previous regime, our fight will continue against them. We'll continue unimpeded. The security forces must not interfere in political affairs, and the militias will have to disband.

DAMON: But there were few details about how the government plans to make that happen. There was an emphasis placed on training and equipping Iraqi forces, but there was not a timetable for U.S. troop withdrawal.

There was a two-pronged approach to dealing with insurgent and sectarian violence. There was not a specific plan on how to carry it out.

HAIDER AL-AUBADI, IRAQI PARLIAMENT MEMBER: We have to carry the gun in one hand to fight the hard-core terrorists, and on the other hand we have to hold in our hands the olive branch, in order that we include everybody, every Iraqi in the political process.

DAMON: That olive branch is a controversial release of some 2,500 detainees from Iraqi prisons, an amnesty to insurgents who have not committed war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes against Iraqis or acts of violence.

But Sunday's violence highlighted just how important implementation will be to any plan that can truly bring peace. Scores of Iraqis were killed and dozens more wounded in attacks across the country. And on Baghdad streets where Iraqis live the daily cycle of violence, the plan met with hope, at best.

MOHD JAWD, BAGHDAD RESIDENT (through translator): It's a good effort, but we hope that the government of Nouri al-Maliki will ignore the test, and turn a new page for all Iraqis, whether they were Baathists, or intelligence, or security forces.

DAMON: Skepticism by others.

ADEL, BAGHDAD RESIDENT (through translator): The only thing this plan shows is a weakness of the government. It's as if it's playing its last card and wants to distract people from what's really going on in Iraq.

DAMON: The government's next step is getting all political parties to agree on just how to implement this plan, but perhaps the greatest challenge of all still lies ahead, convincing the Iraqi people to believe in them.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: So the old neighborhood not the same these days? You know, you could move. Earth in danger. You could move to Mars.

CNN's Mary Snow filed this story for "THE SITUATION ROOM. "

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Are natural disasters, global warming or threats of nuclear war putting the planet Earth on a collision course with disaster? World famous physicist Steven Hawking says he fears the earth could end up like the red hot planet of Venus.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whenever Steven Hawking speaks, we all listen.

SNOW: And many scientists listened when Hawkings recently said that the danger to Earth is so great, that humans should look for a new home. Hawkings believes a permanent base can be built on the Moon in 20 years and a colony on Mars in 40. People living on Mars that soon? Astrophysicist Michael Shara doesn't think so.

MICHAEL SHARA, ASTROPHYSICIST: I think that the timescale of 40 years for a colony there is very optimistic. Wouldn't surprise me to see humans land on Mars in 40 years.

SNOW: Others predict the first human explorers could touch down on Mars in a decade.

ROBERT ZUBRIN, THE MARS SOCIETY: Mars is the North America of the new age of exploration. It's a place where we can establish a new branch of human civilization.

SNOW: Robert Zubrin uses private funds to simulate Mars stations, like this one in the desert. Next year, his group plans to put six researchers 900 miles from the North Pole and simulate life on Mars for four months.

ZUBRIN: They won't be able to go outside without wearing simulated spacesuits and have to talk to each other by radio.

SNOW: Zubrin hopes studying Mars-like conditions, such as a non- breathable atmosphere with no surface water, will speed up the process. The costs are astronomical; the challenge is fierce. But even pessimists have a glimmer of hope of humans reaching Mars.

SHARA: But a full-fledged colony, I think that's at least a century away. And I hope I'm proven wrong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And you can see "THE SITUATION ROOM" every day at 4:00 p.m. Eastern, also 7:00 p.m. Eastern. Wolf -- two doses of Wolf.

Sanding by, we're going to hear from President Bush, a tape that was shot at the White House just a few minutes ago. You'll notice actor Gary Sinise on his left. He is there for an honor. I'll tell you about that in a moment.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have just had a remarkable discussion with some of my fellow citizens who have dedicated their lives to making sure our troops know that this country supports them as they help secure our country and spread freedom.

And one of the amazing things about America is that people are desirous of coming together to support a neighbor in need. And we've got kids who are overseas defending this country, and we got people at this table who are supporting their families, their loved ones and, most importantly, the troops who are in harm's way.

There is an organization called America Supports You. I would hope my fellow citizens would look on the Web page, AmericaSupportsYou.mil, to determine how you can help support our troops, if you so desire. I would urge Americans to do that.

And around the table are leaders of the different organizations that make up this umbrella group. We've heard from people that are helping families of the wounded. We're talking to people who are using their position in different fields, like the entertainment field, to go over and provide hope for our troops. We're talking to moms and wives of those who have volunteered to serve our country.

But I want to thank you all for joining us, and thank you for serving your country.

I told the folks here that the politics in Washington can be rough. But make no mistake about it: I am determined to succeed, and we will implement a plan to achieve victory, which is necessary, and that they need to tell the troops that no matter how tough it looks here in the nation's capital, that I know we're doing the right thing and I know we will win.

I'll take a couple of questions.

QUESTION: Mr. President, General Casey saw you on Friday, and it's been reported that he's talked about withdrawing two brigades from Iraq by this year. Can you tell us what he recommended to you?

BUSH: First of all, I did meet with General Casey. And I met with him because it's very important for me, as well as Secretary Rumsfeld, to meet with our commander on the ground.

I've told the American people our commanders will be making the decisions as to how to achieve victory. And General Casey, of course, is the lead person. So we had a good visit with him, and we talked about a lot of things.

The first thing we talked about was the joint operation with the Iraqi forces to secure Baghdad and how that's going.

We talked about the actions we're taking in Ramadi. The coalition is in the lead in Ramadi and we're trying to make sure Ramadi does not become a safe haven for Al Qaida. And so he explained to me the tactics on the ground, what we're doing to secure that city and to run the Al Qaida types out.

And we talked about the Iraqi training mission. And as you well know, our standards are the Iraqis stand up, the coalition will be able to stand down. And he talked about that kind of progress.

But in terms of our troop presence there, that decision will be made by General Casey as well as the sovereign government of Iraq, based upon conditions on the ground.

And one of the things that General Casey assured me of was that whatever recommendation he makes, it'll be aimed toward achieving victory. And that's what we want.

And victory means a free government that is able to sustain itself, defend itself. And it's a government that will be an ally in the war on terror. It's a government that will be able to fight off Al Qaida and its desires to have a safe haven.

And so I did visit with General Casey, and I came away, once again, with my trust in that man. I told the people here around the table that the decisions that I will make will be based upon the recommendations of people like General George Casey.

QUESTION: Mr. President, how much closer do you believe North Korea is to launching the long-range missile? And how concerned are you about this? What if they just launch a satellite on it?

BUSH: I have said that the North Koreans should notify the world of their intentions -- what they have on top of that vehicle and what are their intentions.

We have not heard from the North Koreans, so I can't tell you what their intentions are.

I have made clear to our partners on this issue -- that would be Japan and South Korea and China and Russia -- that we need to send a focused message to the North Koreans and that this launch, you know, is provocative.

And I was pleased to hear that the Chinese have delivered that message to the North Koreans. And we would hope that the leader in North Korea listen to the Chinese.

So we don't know. We don't know. That's part of the problem. It's a nontransparent society that ought to be sharing its intentions with the rest of the world. QUESTION: I know that you are not planning to see Al Gore's new movie, but do you agree with the premise that global warming is a real and significant threat to the planet?

BUSH: I have said consistently that global warming is a serious problem. There's a debate over whether it's manmade or naturally caused. We ought to get beyond that debate and start implementing the technologies necessary to enable us to achieve a couple of big objectives: one, be good stewards of the environment; two, become less dependent on foreign sources of oil, for economic reasons as for national security reasons.

That's why we're pressing for clean-coal technology.

That's why the hydrogen initiative is robust. In other words, we want our children being able to drive cars not fueled by gasoline but by hydrogen.

That's why I've been a strong advocate of ethanol as an alternative source of fuel to run our cars.

I strongly believe that we ought to be developing, you know, safe nuclear power. The truth of the matter is, if this country was interested -- wants to get rid of its greenhouse gases, we've got to have the nuclear power industry be vibrant and viable.

And so I believe in -- and I've got a plan to be able to deal with greenhouse gasses.

QUESTION: Mr. President, what are you doing to ensure that the Voting Rights Act is reauthorized by the midterm elections? As you're saying, that's one of your top priorities.

And also, do you support foreign ballots (ph)?

BUSH: I am working very carefully...

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

BUSH: I am working very carefully with members of Congress to implement that which I said when I signed the proclamation for Rosa Parks, is, "I want this Voting Rights Act extended." And so we're working with members of the United States Congress to see if we can't get it done.

QUESTION: Sir, several news organizations have reported about a program that allows the administration to look into the bank records of certain suspected terrorists.

My questions are twofold. One, why have you not gone to Congress to ask for authorization for this program five years after it started? And two, with respect, if neither the courts nor the legislature is allowed to know about these programs, how can you feel confident the checks-and-balances system works?

BUSH: Congress was briefed. And what we did was fully authorized under the law.

And the disclosure of this program is disgraceful. We're at war with a bunch of people who want to hurt the United States of America, and for people to leak that program and for a newspaper to publish it does great harm to the United States of America.

What we were doing was the right thing. Congress was aware of it, and we were within the law to do so.

The American people expect this government to protect our constitutional liberties, and at the same time make sure we understand what the terrorists are trying to do.

The 9/11 Commission recommended that the government be robust in tracing money. If you want to figure out what the terrorists are doing, you try to follow their money. And that's exactly what we're doing.

And the fact that a newspaper disclosed it makes it harder to win this war on terror.

Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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